“Then allow me to help you decide.”
The bodice of her dress gave way, and cool air hit her hot skin. Godric's hands were everywhere at once, tugging at her clothing, caressing the exposed flesh, driving her closer to ruin with every touch.
His lips found the curve of her shoulder, pressing hot, open-mouthed kisses along her skin. Down to her collarbone, across to the swell of her breast, his tongue tracing patterns that made her writhe against him.
“Your Grace,” she gasped when his mouth closed over her nipple.
“Godric,” he corrected against her skin. “Say my name, Nora.”
“Godric,” she obeyed, her fingers tangling in his dark hair.
“Good girl,” he murmured, and the praise sent another jolt of pleasure through her.
His hands continued their exploration, one cupping her breast while the other slid down her side, over her hip, gathering the fabric of her skirts. Nora felt as though she were burning from the inside out, every touch stoking the flames higher.
When his hand finally reached its destination, sliding beneath her skirts to stroke the sensitive flesh of her inner thigh, Nora let out a sound that was halfway between a sob and a moan.
“So wet already,” Godric observed, his voice rough with desire. “So ready for me.”
His fingers found her center, and Nora nearly collapsed from the intensity of the sensation. Only his arm around her waist kept her upright as he began to stroke her with expert precision. His ministrations bore no hesitation or reluctance, and his fingers explored the moist heat between her legs eagerly.
“Oh God,” she whimpered, her hips moving of their own accord against his hand.
“Not God,” Godric corrected, his lips finding her ear. “Just me. Only me.”
His fingers thrust in deeply, working her over rapidly and building her pleasure higher and higher until she felt as though she might shatter from it. Just when she thought she could bear no more, when she was teetering on the very edge of something explosive, he stopped.
“No!” The protest burst from her lips before she could stop it.
“No?” Godric's tone was infuriatingly calm. “Do you want something, Nora?”
“Please,” she begged shamelessly. “Please do not stop.”
“Then ask me properly,” he commanded. “Tell me what you want.”
Nora had never felt so exposed, so vulnerable. But the need coursing through her was too powerful to deny.
“Please,” she whispered. “Please let me... I need to...”
“You need to what?” His fingers resumed their movement, but slowly, torturously. “Say it.”
“I need to finish,” she gasped out. “Please, Godric. Please let me finish.”
“Since you asked so nicely,” he murmured, and his fingers began to move with renewed purpose.
The pleasure built again, faster this time, climbing toward that precipice. Nora clutched at his shoulders, her nails digging into the fabric of his coat as waves of sensation crashed over her.
“That is it,” Godric encouraged, his voice dark velvet in her ear. “Let go for me, Nora. Let me see you come undone.”
When the release finally came, it was like nothing Nora had ever experienced. Her entire body tensed, then she fell apart, pleasure flowing from where his fingers had caressed and stroked her. She cried out, the sound muffled against his shoulder, as tremors wracked her frame.
Godric held her through it, supporting her weight as her legs threatened to give out, his fingers slowing to a stop as she came down from the peak.
When she finally regained some semblance of coherence, she found herself pressed against his chest, his arms wrapped around her in an almost protective embrace. She could feel his heart thundering beneath her palm, his breathing as ragged as her own.
For a moment, they simply stood there, wrapped in each other.
Then Godric stepped back, releasing her so suddenly that she nearly stumbled. His expression had shuttered again, that familiar cold mask sliding back into place.
